This week the Detroit Symphony Orchestra performs two different programs at Carnegie Hall. Leonard Slatkin, their music director, is happy to be part of the Spring For Music festival. "More than any composer I can think of, you span not only his musical growth, but literally the coming of age of American music with these four [Ives] symphonies."

KPAC will air Detroit's Spring For Music concerts on Saturday & Sunday, May 18th and 19th at 7pm on KPAC & KTXI.

This week also marks the release of Detroit's latest recording, Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 3 and The Symphonic Dances. "In the 80's, it was very anachronistic, there was very little acceptance of this romantic vain...but now in the 21st century, it seems fresh, and almost modern in ways, perhaps because we don't hear this sound of his style so often." Slatkin adds, "It was a lot of fun to put back together and rethink these various pieces of music - I enjoyed it immensely, and I think you can tell from the orchestra's performances that they threw themselves into it wholeheartedly."

Detroit and Slatkin have also just released the complete Beethoven Symphonies as a digital only release available on their website. Leonard discussed this and other initiatives going on with the orchestra including outreach concerts, web streaming, and more in this interview.

The maestro has been staying busy, also recording the complete orchestral works of Maurice Ravel with his orchestra in Lyon: